The Bay Area temporarily lost a crucial lifeline Wednesday when a fire near the BART tracks in West Oakland shut down service between Oakland and San Francisco for much of the day. The ensuing traffic jams, overcrowded ferries and lost productivity should be an important reminder to everyone about the importance of mass transit for keeping this region moving.

As they sat in traffic - or waited hopelessly for a bus or ferry - we hope that frustrated commuters considered the necessity of the Bay Area's much-maligned transportation infrastructure. The incident showed how vital it is to keep BART operating safely and efficiently. It also showed how important it is for the region to invest in all of our transit infrastructure - including the Bay Bridge, with its $6.3 billion eastern span scheduled to open to motorists in September 2013.

"When there's a major disruption in service, we ask our other friends in mass transit to help us out, and that's what we've done with Alameda County transit and the ferry service today," said BART communications officer Jim Allison. "None of us can do this alone."